Coffee percolator



foct- 23, 1945- F. E. woLco'rT u COFFEE PERCOLATOR Filed July 2.8, `1942 #WTO/UVEK Patented Oct. 23, 1945 y UNITED STAT i 1 Claim.

basket and thereby eliminates the requirement of a separate and internal coffee basket such as usually required in coffee makers of the percolator type.

A further object is to provide a coffee percolator which will require removal of the coffee grounds container and pump unit before coffee can be served fromthe lower bowl.

Further objects of the invention Will be more clearly understood from the following description and from the accompanying drawing in which:

. Fig. 1 is a View in central vertical section illustrating a coffee percolator embodying my invention.

Fig. 2 is an elevational side view of the drainer plate and pump unit.

Fig. 3 is a plan view of said unit.

As shown in the drawing,*my improved perco- Es' PATENT orifice o'orrnniiimron l i i i f- 'Frank Wolcott, West Hartford, Conn., assignor w to The Silex Company, Hartford, Conn.

` o Application July 28, 1,942, Serial No. 452,570

lator comprises a lower container 5 having a neck portion `ii and a handle 5-a attached thereto.

A coffee container l is seated upon the top of the container 5 and has a skirt 8 surrounding an opening 9 and depending into the neck of the container 5.

The wallof said container 'I is provided with an outward projection II) which forms a shoulder I I that is seated upon the upper edge of the container 5 to support the container 1 thereon while the depending skirt 8 will position it against displacement `on the lower container and also direct the ow of liquid from the upper container to the lower container.

The ltering and pumping unit for my imprived percolator may comprise a drainer plate I2 which is seated upon an annular ledge I3 that is provided in the interior of the projection IU. The said drainer plate is preferably formed with a central boss I4, a plurality of ribs I5 radiating from said central boss to the peripheral edge of the drainer plate and apertures I6 which extend 55 through thedrainer plate between the said ribs.

A strainer member I'I, such as a disk or sheet of pervious material is attached to the said drainer plate, rests upon the upper edges of the ribs ,I5 and extends downwardly along the peripheral edge of the plate and underneath said plate between the bottom thereof and the ledge I3.

A pump for forcing Water from the lower container 5 into the upper container 1 is provided and consists of a base I8 having a recess I9 in the bottom thereof to form a pump chamber. The said pump chamber is provided with a passage'in the form of a notch 20, in the bottom edge of said basel, to permit liquid to enter from the Y container 5 into said chamber I9. A passage 2| extends upwardly in the base from the chamber I9 and connects with a recess 22 preferably provided to receive the end of a tube 23 which extends through an opening in the boss I4 on the drainer plate I2, to a position above the bottoni of the container l and communicates the chamber I9 with the said container.

The said base I8 and tube 23 may be formed of such materials as porcelain, glass, or the like, and the tube may be permanently connected to the base by means of a suitable cement indicated at 24 or, if preferred, the said tube and base may be formed as an integral structure.

In the operation of the above described coffee percolator, water is placed in the lower container 5 and coffee grounds are placed in the upper container 1 over the strainer member Il. The water in the lower container will then enter through the passage 20 into the pumping chamber I9 and o the opening 2|. When said water is heated, that portion which is contained within the chamber I9 will' be forced upwardly through the tube 23 and out from thetop of said tube, into the container 'l and over the coffee grounds therein. The water in the upper container then percolates through the coffee grounds, is filtered by means of the strainer Il and passes through the opening 9 back into the lower container as a coffee brew.

It will be noted that my invention provides a novel structure wherein the equivalent of the conventional form of a coffee basket, such as commonly used in percolators, is provideclrby the upper container itself, which receives the coffee grounds directly therein and thereby functions as an external coiee basket. This permits` a saving in the amount of space and in the size of the upper container which is required with separate coffee baskets as commonly used.

The base I8 of the pumping unit is of a substantially heavy construction so as to provide sufticient weight for retaining the said base and tube 23 upon the bottom of the container 5 and against the upward pressure which is caused by the pumping action within the chamber I9. Further, it is pointed out that the walls of the base pumping unit simply rests upon the bottom of the I lower bowl 5 and is free to slide to one side :of the lower bowl should it be tipped for pouring coffee therefrom without'the container land the v'entire pumping unit having rst been removed. l The base 18 is retained 'in central position vvin the 'lower bowl by means of the drainer plate I 2 which is suflicientl-y wide to retain the tube 23 and base -in proper alignment. However, said base, upper container and drainer plate l2 have been purposely made capable of displacement, upon tipping of the entire percolator, in order to render it necessary that the said members be removed from the lower bowl, before coffee can be poured therefrom, and thereby eliminate the possibility of breakage of these parts should the entire percolator be tipped to a point where they would fall foi the lower bowl.

I claim:

In a colee maker of the character described, the combination of a lower bowl, an upper bowl having` a substantially at bottom seated upon said lower bowl and a central opening in said .bottomu ian annular wall portion defining said opening .and depending into said lower bowl, a drainer member seated upon said bottom over said opening, a pump member in said lower bowl, a tube extending upwardly from said pump member through said drainer member, a vertical boss on said drainer plate surrounding `said tube, and a strainer sheet of pervious material surrounding said boss and extending outwardly therefrom over and under said drainer plate.

FRANK E. WOLCOI'T. 

